Benefits Outweigh Risks of Statins

A recent study shows that a larger segment
of the population could see the positive
effects of statin therapy. For
instance, the medication could help prevent
patients with diabetes and individuals
at high risk of heart disease from
experiencing a heart attack or stroke,
even if their cholesterol levels do not fall
into the high category.

In their study, the researchers assessed
the results of 14 earlier trials
involving statin treatment in 90,000 individuals.
Aside from high-risk patients with
low cholesterol showing positive results,
the international research team said that
the individuals who had the highest
reduction in their cholesterol level reaped
the greatest benefit.

The researchers found no evidence of
an increased risk of cancer. They also
found no evidence that extremely low
cholesterol levels were linked with
increased odds of being diagnosed with
other diseases. Although higher doses
of statins were tied to a higher risk of
serious muscle problems, those occurrences
were rare.